(March 29, 2012) In honor of his 80th birthday, violinist Joseph Silverstein ('50) performs with notable friends from the classical music world on Sunday, April 15 at 3 p.m. at the Curtis Institute of Music.

The faculty recital takes place in Field Concert Hall at Curtis, 1726 Locust Street, Philadelphia. Admission is free and no tickets are required.

Joseph Silverstein has appeared as a soloist and conductor with more than one hundred orchestras in the United States, Japan, Israel, and throughout Europe and was a member of the Chamber Music Society of Lincoln Center for fifteen years. He joined the Curtis faculty in 2000 and has also served on the faculties of Yale and Boston universities, New England Conservatory, and Tanglewood Music Center. He has recorded for such labels as RCA, Deutsche Grammophon, Delos, CBS, Nonesuch, EMI, and Image.

Mr. Silverstein began his musical studies with his father, Bernard. He continued with Josef Gingold and studied with Efrem Zimbalist and Veda Reynolds at Curtis, graduating in 1950. He then held positions with the orchestras of Houston, Philadelphia, and Denver before joining the Boston Symphony Orchestra in 1955 as its youngest player. In 1959 he won third prize (silver medal) in the Queen Elisabeth Competition, and in 1960 he won the Naumburg Award. In 1962 he was appointed concertmaster of the Boston Symphony Orchestra, and he became its assistant conductor in 1971. He served as music director of the Utah Symphony for fifteen years and was named its conductor laureate in 1998.

The Curtis Institute of Music educates and trains exceptionally gifted young musicians for careers as performing artists on the highest professional level. One of the world's leading conservatories, Curtis is highly selective and provides full-tuition scholarships to all of its 163 students. In this intimate environment, students receive personalized attention from a celebrated faculty. A busy schedule of performances is at the heart of Curtis's distinctive "learn by doing" approach. This philosophy has produced an impressive number of notable artists since the school's founding in 1924, from such legends as Leonard Bernstein and Samuel Barber to current stars Jonathan Biss, Juan Diego Flórez, Alan Gilbert, Hilary Hahn, Jennifer Higdon, and Lang Lang.